Watanabe: Either win, or I no longer deserve this jersey
Yuta Watanabe, a top Japanese national basketball team player, is optimistic about their chances of winning a major competition.
Japan’s men’s basketball national team lost all eight matches at the last World Cup in China and the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
This year won’t be any easier - there is no Rui Hachimura, and the rivals in Okinawa are Germany, Australia, and Finland.
“As a leader, I’m in a position to lead my team to victory; now I have to fulfill my responsibility,” said the 28-year-old Watanabe, who will play for the Phoenix Suns from next season, adding: “No one wants us to lose - not even the spectators or us. If we lose everything again, I’m ready to give up the national team jersey. I am so dedicated to this WC”.
The 2023 FIBA World Cup could be the last time Yuta Watanabe plays for Japan 😳 pic.twitter.com/Jqx7HUpwbR
— Basketball Forever (@bballforever_) July 28, 2023
Watanabe, a wing basketball player with a height of 206 cm, points out that younger players should try to bring success if he is not in the apartment. “If I fail to take the team to the Olympics in Paris, then I am no longer qualified to be in the national team.”
In 179 career NBA games, Watanabe averages 5.6 points and 2.4 rebounds.